Larry Shenk, Vice President of Alumni Relations, shares his notes, quotes and anecdotes from the world of baseball.

Simply Masterful

Cliff continued his masterful pitching Wednesday night in St. Louis.

He improved to 4-0 this month with his second straight shutout (23 consecutive scoreless innings now). He’s allowed one run in his last 33 innings for an unheard of 0.27 ERA.

According to Elias Sports Bureau: The last major-league pitcher to throw 33 or more innings while allowing no more than one run over a four-start span was Roy Oswalt the 2008 Astros. The only other Phillies pitcher to do so over the last 20 years was Randy Wolf in 2002.

With one more start this month, he’s the leading candidate for NL Pitcher of the Month. Last Phillies pitcher to win such as honor was Doc last July.

Series ends Thursday night and then the Phillies head home for a six-game, interleague homestand, three each with the A’s and Red Sox.

Club Record
Cliff’s shutout was the 10th for the staff this season.

They’ve got a long way to go to match the club record of 26 set in 1916. Hall of Famer Grover Cleveland Alexander had 16 of those 26, a single-season record that will never be broken in Phillies history.

Today in Baseball1932: The National League, in a meeting with club presidents, finally approves players wearing uniform numbers. The AL started in 1929.

1963: Jimmy Piersall of the Mets hits his 100th career home run and celebrates by running the bases backward to the anger of Phillies pitcher Dallas Green.

1971: Rick Wise becomes the first pitcher to hit two home runs while pitching a no-hitter, 4-0, at Cincinnati.

Down On The Farm
CF John Mayberry had a single, double, 2nd home run, 3 RBI and a stolen bases in Lehigh Valley’s 10-5 loss to Indianapolis . . . Reading dropped its 7th straight, 3-1, to Erie . . . RHS Trevor May tied his career high with 14 strikeouts (7 innings, 1 hit, 0 runs) in a Clearwater game that wound up suspended because of rain, 2-2, after 10 innings . . . Williamsport lost its 4th in a row, 11-7, at Jamestown . . . Gulf Coast League Phillies bowed, 8-6, to the Braves.

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